Anna Kalinskaya was the picture of despair after losing to Iga Swiatek at the US Open, as she was left in tears following the straight-sets defeat at Flushing Meadows
Iga Swiatek issued a compassionate response after Anna Kalinskaya was left in tears following their clash at the US Open. The two faced off in the third round at Flushing Meadows, with Swiatek being the clear favourite to advance.
Kalinskaya, the underdog, stormed ahead with an early 5-1 lead and seemed set to clinch the first set. However, she lost four set points as Swiatek rallied to take the set 7-6.
From that point on, the Polish player was unstoppable, cruising to victory and triggering an emotional response from Kalinskaya.
Visibly upset after surrendering her commanding lead in the first set, Kalinskaya was seen weeping in the players’ tunnel on her way back to the changing rooms. She wiped away tears during the solitary walk, reports the Express.
Swiatek had nothing but praise for her Russian adversary as she reflected on the shift in momentum that led to her comeback victory.
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“Honestly, Anna was playing great,” Swiatek admitted. “She was playing all these risky balls in like she once did against me in Dubai. I just wanted to make a little bit less mistakes. I just needed to be more solid.
“I just focused on simple things. She started making a bit more mistakes and it got, for sure, tight. I already felt like I had nothing to lose because I was losing pretty bad. At the end, I just went for it, because what more can I do?”.
This follows just days after Kalinskaya lashed out at her American opponents following a collapse from a 5-1 advantage in the opening set of a doubles encounter.
She partnered with Sorona Cristea against McCartney Kessler and Peyton Stearns, suffering defeat in straight sets. Kalinskaya approached the net for a heated discussion with Stearns, branding her conduct disrespectful.
She seemed irritated that her rivals had failed to offer apologies when their shots clipped the net cord and dropped over.
“I expected a little respect,” raged Kalinskaya, who has never progressed beyond the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament, before adding: “I haven’t seen you apologise even once.”
Kessler and Stearns remained silent about the confrontation, though the latter posted an Instagram story from tennis player Danielle Wolf which seemed to contain a veiled swipe at Kalinskaya.
“Big dub [win],” wrote Wolf alongside four American flag emojis, before referencing a crucial mistake from Kalinskaya: “We love a fh [forehand] shank on match point.”